The Greensboro Gargoyles turned away the Tahoe Knight Monsters Thursday for their first home win in franchise history.
The Greensboro Gargoyles reached another milestone Thursday night.
The ECHL’s latest expansion club notched its first home win in franchise history with a 4-3 triumph over the Tahoe Knight Monsters in overtime.
Greensboro dominated in shots on goal 14-4 in the opening frame, but it was Tahoe who got on the scoreboard first.
Sloan Stanick continued to stay hot, scoring in the final two minutes of the period off a setup from Casey Bailey to put the Knight Monsters up 1-0 after 20 minutes. It marked the 10th time in 12 games that Tahoe has scored first.
The Gargoyles came back in the second period with two goals 16 seconds apart, both by Demetrios Koumontzis, who doubled his season goal total in one shift.
The first goal came 4:14 into the frame on a rush chance set up by Ethan Leyh. Anthony Rinaldi dropped a pass to Koumontzis in the slot, putting in a wrist shot to tie the game 1-1. Leyh extended a five-game assist streak on the play.
Greensboro took the lead moments later as Koumontzis stood netfront, tipping a shot from Arty Borshyov, with Andrius Kulbis-Marino gaining his first career point with an assist.
The Knight Monsters reclaimed the lead with back-to-back goals of their own in the third period. Both goals were by Devon Paliani, coming at 2:38 and 4:43.
The Gargoyles tied the game after going 14 minutes in the third period without a shot on goal. On their first shot of the frame, Patrick Newell gained possession on the left wing, then wrapped the puck around the net to David Gagnon open on the near post. Gagnon scored at the 6:12 mark to knot the score 3-3.
The teams headed to overtime, and it took just 16 seconds to get the golden goal. The Gargoyles won the faceoff and attacked quickly with Newell feeding a give-and-go pass to Deni Goure while driving the net for a tip-in game winner.
The game-winner was especially gratifying for Newell, who was a member of the Knight Monsters last season. It was his first goal of this season to give Greensboro a 4-3 win, and their first home victory in franchise history.
The overtime marked the fifth time in 11 games Greensboro has played an extra frame. Goaltender Ruslan Khazheyev picked up his second consecutive win for Greensboro, with a third during his stop in the AHL, making 22 saves in his return to the Gargoyles after being reassigned by the Chicago Wolves on Nov. 11.
The Gargoyles maintained their penalty killing streak, finishing two-for-two on the night. Greensboro has killed 20-consecutive penalties in the First Horizon Coliseum, leading the ECHL on home ice.
The two teams meet again Friday night for Game Two of the series. Friday’s “Pucks and Paws” matchup encourages fans to bring their furry friends to the First Horizon Coliseum. Discounted dog tickets come with a pup-surprise gift at the door.
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